Derek Lim wrote: >I suggest R. Strauss's Metamorphosen. This is just a coincidence of timing, but the same day I initiated this post, my copy of Metamorphosen by the Brandis Quartet on Nimbus arrived at home. I played it that evening, and it did remind me of the posting. But, there were a few rays of sunshine in the work which mitigated the heavy weight of doom and gloom. For me, Zemlinsky's string quartet no. 2 never lets you out of its dire grasp. Whether that's a good thing or not is debatable. Concerning the Nimbus recording, I'm not sure if I'm satisfied with the recorded sound. I'm finding it rather crude, but I have to stick with it some more to determine if I think that's the right sound for this music. Also, I haven't played around yet with my equalizer settings. Being blunt, I don't know the work well enough yet to conclude what type of sound suits it best or whether I prefer the orchestral or chamber version. All these decisions to make, and I like to straddle the fence. Don Satz [log in to unmask]